“I fell in love with the culture”

19-year-old Mthokozisi Mkwakwa, better known as Trauy Scarta, is making his way to become part of the hottest local Hip Hop artists.

His stage name is a collection of his own ideas.

“The name ‘Trauy’ comes from an Irish surname ‘Troy’, which means soldier and I feel like I am more of a soldier and the only weapons I have are my lyrics. ‘Scarta’ is just a name that came to mind and it best describes my type of music by its uniqueness,” he explained.

The Klarinet based musician said that he fell in love with Hip Hop music in 2011.

“I started listening to music in 2011 and understood it more as time went by and I managed to record my first single in 2012.”

He said that his music is based on the love he has for music.

“I just fell in love with the music culture and I write music about everything that is happening in our society.” He added: “I feel like there is so much to write about and most people realise those things when they hear me talking about them in my songs.”

In 2014 he joined a band called “TFP” with his friends and learned how to play a guitar.

“Being in the band taught me a lot of things I would have not discovered on my own. I did a few gigs with the band and raised some funds to invest into studio materials.”

He said that it was a bit difficult when he started his music career because he had no studio and all the necessary equipment as he recorded his first song using his cell phone.

He managed to finally build his own recording studio in 2017 and taught himself how to produce music.

“The same year, I met my manager and he taught me everything about music and its business side.”

The grade 12 student at Coronation Secondary School has shared a stage with headliners such as Cassper Nyovest and Dj Tira.

He said that his goal is to touch souls and heal people with his good music. “I am trying to tell my story out there and heal people, yet entertain them. I want to be remembered for my music and inspire some other artists out there.”